


I Wish You Wouldn’t Have To Suffer

by StarFusion617



Category: Lumine (Webcomic), Lumine - Fandom
Genre: Angst, M/M, Poison, She has a gun oh no, injured lumine, kody cares about lumine, kody has a heart, lumine fluff, lumine spoilers, that one mysterious woman, werewolf!lumine
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-12
Updated: 2018-09-09
Packaged: 2019-05-21 06:35:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14910194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarFusion617/pseuds/StarFusion617
Summary: Lumine is poisoned.There is a cure, but it is rare and extremely hard to find.Can Kody and his dad’s team find all the ingredients and make the antidote in time?If they don’t, Lumine will never wake up again...





	1. Poisoned

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Lumine](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/388664) by Emma Krogell. 



> "Three..." one finger went down, "two..." her lips seemed to form the word in slow motion, her eyes widening in sick excitement, "one..."

Lumine struggled against the chains wrapping themselves around his wolf form. He growled and tensed, snapping at the links and straining to stay standing. The chains grew tighter and tighter, cutting into his skin and fur. Kody, restrained a few feet away, squirmed desperately, trying his hardest to free himself to get to Lumine. The wolf snarled and gave another fruitless tug on the chains, teeth glinting in his open mouth.

"Yes, yes, yes! I have finally caught the wolf, and there is nothing you can do about it!" the mysterious woman from a couple of months ago cried in delight. She had lost Lumine last time, but this time Kody's dad didn't know he was in trouble, and she had made sure to teleport them both away with her first to make it nearly impossible for Aiden to find them.

"Let him go!" Kody screamed. The woman just laughed and took out a gun from her waistband. Kody's eyes widened, and Lumine growled at her from within his bonds. She watched Kody's face carefully as she slowly raised the pistol to point the muzzle at Lumine's head. The wolf huffed and twisted in another futile attempt at escape, churring angrily under his breath.

"No! Don't you dare shoot him! Let him go, you evil monster!" Kody yelled. The woman smiled joyfully at his reaction and slowly tightened her finger on the trigger. Kody struggled harder, but only succeeded in scraping his arm against the wall he was chained to.

"The wolf can't be killed with a simple bullet, but he can be injured," the woman said maniacally. Kody cried out as she squeezed the trigger more and more, and then...BLAM!

The bullet hit Lumine right between the ears, and he let out a wolf-like screech, careening backwards from the force. His head hit the ground and his paws thrashed, the magical chains quickly taking up the slack and tightening, cutting off his struggles. Kody fought to hold back tears as the wolf strained to push himself back up into a standing position with the chains practically strangling him. His eyes flashed dangerously. The woman laughed, then frowned.

"Needs more suffering. Good thing I came prepared." Her sadistic smile returned, and she took out a particularly sharp-looking bullet with purple stains on the tip. Kody stared wide-eyed, almost choking on his breath.

"Is that...?" he asked cautiously. The woman chuckled. She popped the bullet into the pistol's chamber and took aim once again at Lumine. Kody couldn't hold back the tears anymore and let out a sob.

"No! No, please! Don't do it, please, don't shoot that bullet, you don't understand, don't do it!" he shrieked, bright green eyes flaring with panic and desperation. The woman simply planted her finger on the trigger, plaintively ignored him, and fired.

"LUMINE!!"

The wolf was hit in the shoulder and fell back, legs splayed and tongue lolling out. He continued to struggle, but it was weaker. Kody waited, watching for a change. When there was none, he glanced at the woman, whose smile was growing. She held up three fingers.

"Three..." one finger went down, "two..." her lips seemed to form the word in slow motion, her eyes widening in sick excitement, "one..." Kody's gaze snapped back to Lumine at the werewolf's sudden howl. Lumine never showed discomfort in his wolf form, especially verbally, usually because not much could hurt him bad enough for him to need to. Kody gasped and sobbed, still trying to wriggle free.

Lumine's head jerked back and forth, and his legs strained to hold him up. He thrashed, tail stiff, claws scraping gouges in the ground. His mouth opened and closed, and he fought to draw air, chest heaving. His teeth, formerly white, shone red in the setting sun's faint light. Blood trickled from his jaws down his neck and stained his white fur, dripping onto his glittering claws and the cement floor. He groaned and shoved his head upwards, the chains cutting lines in his skin and drawing blood, which streamed down the sides of his face. His nose twitched at the metallic stench and he growled, flipping his head back and forth again. After a few minutes of this, he finally forced his eyes open, mouth gaped and breath coming out in sharp gasps. Kody cried out when the wolf's eyes met his for a split second, the blues and yellows flashing with agony and desperation, pleading and begging for mercy, for rescue, for relief. Then Lumine screwed them shut again and his head dropped, the chains choking his neck and pulling his paws into bending.

The wolf's legs buckled and he collapsed, mouth still open and ears flattened to his head, partly by chains and partly from pain. He snarled, still valiantly trying to fight, but Kody saw him tire, and the wolf soon could only growl, thrashing in agony from the bullet's poison.

"Lumine! No, Lumine! Lumine!" Kody screamed, falling forward in his attempt to free himself. He reached for the wolf, eyes filling with even more tears, elbows buckling as he fell. He hit the ground on his stomach, chin smacking the concrete, and he sobbed, tied hands stretched out towards his loyal bodyguard, fingers splayed, grabbing for his fur, his ears, his paws, anything. But he couldn't reach. He yelled and cried and tugged his chain with all the strength he had left, but it was magical, too, and didn't move an inch. The woman smiled, blew out the smoking tip of the pistol dramatically, and turned to Kody.

"Is there an antidote?" Kody asked desperately. The woman nodded.

"Yes, but it's very rare and ancient. You'll have to look for it first. Even if you do manage to find it, I'll look forward to seeing your face when the wolf dies from the poison. It may be curable, but every day passed and you don't find the antidote, he will _suffer_."

Kody sobbed again, giving up on reaching Lumine. The way she said 'suffer' made him realize just how bad the poison really was. The woman smirked, turned, and teleported away, taking both boys with her. As soon as they landed back in Solefor, she disappeared again. Kody’s chains disappeared, but Lumine’s stayed as solid as before. They were back in the very same alley they had been caught in last time she had tried to take Kody. Apparently, now that the werewolf was in play, she didn't think him so important anymore.

"Lumine..." Kody moaned and managed to drag himself closer now that he wasn't chained to the wall. Lumine moaned and struggled minimally, unable to do much anymore. Kody's chained hands clinked together, and he sat up with a little difficulty. He quickly scooted over to the discarded key a few feet away and used it between his teeth to unlock one handcuff. Then he swiftly unlocked the other one and threw the cuffs behind him at the wall.

Just as he was struggling to stand and walk back over to Lumine, his father came running through the alley, a team of associates behind him. He gathered Kody into his arms just before the boy collapsed and checked him over for injuries. Other than the cuff marks on his wrists and the exhaustion from so much emotional trauma, he seemed fine. One scrape littered his arm and nothing more.

"Dad..." Kody trailed off, breathing hard. Aiden looked down at him closer.

"Yes, Kody? What is it?" Kody wordlessly shifted out of his father's arms and started to crawl towards Lumine, who was still laying where the chains bound him. Aiden quickly stood and walked the few feet to the fallen wolf, Kody fairly easily making the short distance. He sobbed and buried his face in Lumine's red-stained fur, taking fistfuls of the once-white hair and tightening his fingers around the very thing he had been so desperate to reach the past twenty minutes. Lumine whimpered, tears leaking from his half-open eyes. Kody's heart clenched at his companion's obvious pain, and he sniffled.

"He's poisoned, dad. That woman said that the antidote is rare and hard to find. And every day that we don't have it, he has to suffer..." he choked.

Aiden sighed and used his magic to dissolve the magical, green chains. He gathered Kody up in his arms, but the boy wouldn't listen. He cried and yelled and fought as much as he could in his weakened state to stay by the wolf's side. Aiden finally ordered Sherry to help restrain Kody, and the other four people he had brought with him began to try to wake Lumine up so he could transform back to human.

The wolf's eyes finally fluttered open, if only for a moment, and his exhausted body automatically transformed back to his human form at the momentary gain of consciousness. Kody was still screaming and sobbing, but Sherry and Aiden carried him back to the truck they had come in as Lumine sunk back into unconsciousness. The others brought Lumine back, and eventually Kody grew too tired to continue fighting and fell into a light doze.

When they finally got home, Aiden and Sherry carried Kody inside, and the others settled Lumine in his bed, already starting to treat his wounds. Kody was soon sleeping soundly in his bed, and Lumine's cuts and bullet wounds were cleaned, stitched, and bandaged. The blood was washed off and his mouth and teeth were cleaned of the sticky, dried liquid. Then he was put in his bed to rest, face still pinched with discomfort and ears still flat against his head in clear pain.

Aiden could only hope that in the morning, they could start to work on saving Lumine from the deadly poison.


	2. Antidote

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is short! Hope it meets at least some expectations compared to the first!

Kody woke up to Lumine screaming. He sat straight up in bed and threw back the covers, running for the door. Just before he got there, it opened to reveal Sherry standing just outside, one hand on the knob. Her jaw was tense, and her brows were drawn with discomfort. Kody stared past her at the people rushing past down the hallway toward Lumine’s room for a moment before she snapped her fingers in front of his face to gain his attention. He turned his gaze on her angrily.

“Let me see him! Why is he screaming? I thought it was supposed to get worse gradually!” he yelled. Sherry sighed and pushed him back to close the door behind her. The sounds outside became muffled, including the fading screaming.

“He’s having a nightmare, Kody. Your dad is trying to wake him right now. Apparently, when that woman said ‘suffer’, she didn’t mean only physical,” she explained gravely. Kody ground his teeth as Sherry quickly left and locked the door, shouting at the dawn sky for answers.

————

Aiden came in to talk to him about half an hour later, after the screaming had died down. Kody looked to him nervously, anxious for what news there was. His dad exhaled slowly and stood against the wall across from Kody, who was sitting on his bed.

“Lumine’s awake now, and you can see him in a minute.” Kody brightened at this and waited impatiently for more.

“As Sherry told you, he was in the middle of a nightmare when we got to him. When he woke up, I managed to get some information, though he wasn’t exactly in the mood to talk.” Kody went still, unblinking.

“The nightmare was more like a premonition. From what little Lumine said, it seems like it depicted him in great pain, for a long time.” Kody gasped and sat back. Aiden shook his head.

“That’s not the worst of it. He also mentioned that afterwards, the dream changed. He saw himself sitting on the floor in his room. You were standing in front of him, one hand outstretched. He said his face was scared, and confused. You were saying something, trying to get him to answer. His dream self sat against the wall and pulled away, asking one question over and over, always with the same answer from you: ‘Who are you?’ ‘I’m Kody, Lumine. Don’t you remember me?’ ‘No. Don’t touch me, please. Don’t hurt me...’”

Kody was silent for a long time. His dad put a hand on his shoulder and said he could go see Lumine now before leaving. When he finally managed to gather the courage to stand, he still couldn’t turn the knob.

————

Kody stayed in his room and used his phone to look up poison antidotes. Most were fake, with directions like ‘Mix vinegar and baking soda and shake gently until concoction turns yellow’. He knew enough about potions to know that vinegar and baking soda did not turn yellow when mixed, and instead fizzed over. He had made sand volcanoes with them before with his dad when he was really little, five or six. A few actually seemed reasonable, but the ingredients were easy to find and very common. The woman had said the antidote was ancient, so the ingredients must be, too.

After three long hours of searching, including his dad coming in once to check on him and deciding to search the old town library, he had found nothing. Just as he put his phone down, a soft whining noise came from down the hall. His dad’s team was out searching for traces of the woman, and Aiden himself was out at the library. Kody carefully went down the hall and opened the door to Lumine’s room.

The boy was facing the window across the room from Kody, holding his ears in his hands. His fingers tightened into fists as he whimpered, clearly trying not to let anyone else notice his pain. Kody sighed and padded across the room to Lumine’s bed. He walked around to face the other kid and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. Lumine’s tightly closed eyes opened, and he curled up tighter.

“Go away, Kody. I’m fine.” Kody shook his head.

“No, you’re not. Do you want me to check for pain meds in the medicine cabinet?” he asked. Lumine shook his head no and mentioned that they most likely wouldn’t do anything against the foreign poison. Kody just nodded and stepped back. Lumine soon fell back into sleep, every once in a while furrowing his brows against the ever-present pain. Kody stood next to the bed and watched the werewolf’s ears fall back against his head whenever this happened.

Kody turned to head for the door when something caught his eye. Sticking out from under Lumine’s pillow was a red corner. He silently slid the piece of paper out and went back to his own room, sitting on his bed. He carefully unfolded the paper and examined it. It took three seconds for him to realize that it was the antidote recipe for the poison. He studied it with haste, reading as quickly as he could.

_Triple P  
Potent Poison Potion_

_Ingredients:_  
_-Echinacea Petals_  
_-Hot Spring Water_  
_-Four-Leaf Clover_  
_-Wolf Tooth_  
_-Werewolf Fur of Soon-To-Be-Cured_  
_-Bat Wing_  
_-Yellow Cliff Mushrooms_

_1\. Pour 2 cups hot spring water into large bowl_  
_2\. Crush 1 wolf tooth into powder and mix with spring water in bowl_  
_3\. Chop up 6 echinacea petals and 1 four-leaf clover and mix together_  
_4\. Cut 2 mushrooms in half and smash on sturdy surface, then cook over flames until bright gold_  
_5\. Mix plants and mushrooms and let sit in sun for one day_  
_6\. Cut claws and muscle off 1 bat wing and tear up remaining wing membrane_  
_7\. Mix torn-up bat wing with plants and mushrooms mixture_  
_8\. Add mixture to bowl with spring water and powdered wolf tooth_  
_9\. Sprinkle 1 pinch of werewolf fur into bowl and stir over flames until concoction becomes light purple in color_  
_10\. Bottle whole 2 cups potion and give all to soon-to-be-cured_

_Possible Side-Effects:_  
_-Dizziness_  
_-Drowsiness_  
_-Nausea_  
_-Headaches_  
_-Temporary Hair Loss_  
_-Temporary Loss of Balance_

_Note: Subject may not exhibit all side-effects. Subject may also display none or all. Watch subject closely for three days after initial treatment with potion. Subject will be normal after three days._

Kody heard a door open just as he finished reading. He opened his door and ran to the front door, where his dad was just walking in. He got there as the door closed behind Aiden.

“Dad! I found the antidote recipe!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wishing all crystal nights, Star


	3. The Search Begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this is late! (And wow, so many kudos and hits!) I had two vacations this month, both a week long. I have had little time to write, but I will try my hardest to catch up with the amount of kudos and hits that mean more chapters! Sorry this is short, but I wanted to get something up. Don't worry, I have the next few chapters planned out, so they should be up as soon as I can write them. Sorry for the wait and thank you for your understanding.

"That's great, Kody!" Aiden said excitedly. He hung his coat up and raced off, throwing a quick, "Be right back!" over his shoulder as he jogged down the hallway.

When Aiden returned, he had brought Sherry and Silver with him. They sat in the living room and examined the list, mumbling about ingredients and locations. Kody couldn't make out any of it, but he sat as patiently as he could manage until Aiden and the others had looked over the entire thing.

"Some of these ingredients are quite rare. That vile woman wasn't joking when she said the recipe for the antidote was ancient. A few haven't been collected for modern potions and chemistry in over forty years," Aiden thought aloud. Sherry frowned.

"Take the mushrooms, for example," she began, "They haven't been used for potion brewing in over a decade, and the species has gotten dangerously close to dying out. Fortunately, now we have other ingredients that work as replacements and substitutes, but they aren't always reliable, even in modern brews. Using the actual mushrooms would probably be best in this case because the recipe is so old. Unwanted reactions could be better avoided that way. Silver, show them what you found."

Silver, who had been looking at a portable computer screen the past five minutes, looked up. Sherry was peering over his shoulder, reading the information on the screen.

Silver turned the computer around so that they could all see the screen. An article on old potions recipes was pulled up, highlighted text prominent next to the hovering cursor.

_Ancient potion recipes were most commonly used for curing food and water related health dangers, such as poisons from bacteria in the water or contaminated crops. They usually included rare ingredients that contain special toxins or spores to counteract such substances. Mushrooms such as the Purple Cavern Fungus and the Yellow Cliff Mushroom quickly became highly popular because of the differing strengths and effects of the fungi. Modern poison antidote recipes use other fungi or plant life to replace suffering species of mushrooms, but the old recipes work far better and are highly reliable. The effects of the ingredients for any potion must first be released with the involvement of other ingredients and cooking techniques that date back hundreds of years. If a person were to use such old recipes, they would need to be careful and precise for successful results. Old recipes can prove very dangerous if proper preparation is not executed._

Sherry looked up first, having skimmed the article before the rest of them read it. She met Aiden's eyes, then Silver's over the computer. Kody swallowed hard and set his jaw.

"We need to split up. There's no way we'll ever get all of the ingredients in time otherwise, and I'm not using substitutes," he said firmly. The adults nodded, but Aiden looked conflicted.

"Kody, are you sure you should go out there? The team can handle it, and it's very dangerous to get some of those ingredients. I don't want you getting hurt. Don't be reckless because of Lumine's health," he said slowly. Kody gritted his teeth and suppressed the sudden urge to snarl at his father.

"I'm not being reckless. But I won't sit here and do nothing to help Lumine. I don't care how dangerous it is. I'm going. Now, who's getting which ingredients?" he asked, leaving no room for argument. Aiden sighed and lifted his chin higher.

"The rest of the team can help. I'll assign two or three other people to get the last ingredients. Sherry, you and Silver will work as a team. I'll go with Kody after I group the others together and send them off. That way, there should be just enough teams for each ingredient. We already have the materials required to mix and brew the potion here. Sherry and Silver, you can get the wolf tooth and the hot spring water. Kody, you and I will handle the bat wing, the fur of the drinker, and the Cliff Mushrooms. Another team will have to get the echinacea petals and the clover. Good luck."

Silver, Sherry, and Kody nodded, and they scattered. Kody went straight for Lumine to get the easiest ingredient: the werewolf fur of the soon-to-be-cured. While his dad sent off the other team, he jogged down the hallway to Lumine's room and carefully opened the door. He stepped inside, closing the door behind him, and padded over to Lumine's messy bed.

"Lumine?" Kody whispered hesitantly. A head of white fluffy hair turned slowly, ears perking up from beneath the covers. Lumine's multicolored eyes opened and peered at Kody, hazy and clouded. The ears dropped slightly like the werewolf couldn't hold them up anymore.

"Kody?" Lumine struggled to sit up, arms trembling under his weight. Kody put a hand on his chest and held him down. Lumine gazed up at him questioningly.

"What's going on?" he asked in a raspy whisper. Kody sighed and held up a scissors he had snatched on the way to the werewolf's room.

"We need some of your fur for the antidote potion. I found the recipe. Dad and the team are working on the rest of the ingredients right now. I'll go with once I have some fur," Kody explained. Lumine just nodded and let Kody snip a small piece off of his head, making sure it looked like nothing happened afterwards.

Kody frowned as he set the scissors on the desk next to the bed and headed for the door, watching as Lumine sank back into the blankets and closed his eyes. They had dark circles underneath, and his ears never went back up. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was asleep, but his nose wrinkled in obvious discomfort. As Kody closed the door behind him, he could only hope that they could find the ingredients in time to spare Lumine of the worst of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	4. The Search - Day One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> School started. Ugh.

     Kody met his dad outside the front of their house. Aiden nodded once when his son arrived and wordlessly handed the boy a scratchy, hand-drawn map. The pencil marks laid over the page outlined an area of the edge of town. Quickly scribbled, wispy lines created rough mountains, and a cross-hatched dark spot indicated a cave. This was where they would be going. Aiden had given Lumine a phone earlier, and he pocketed his own, so they would have contact with the werewolf if necessary. Kody studied the map route highlighted with a yellow pen before handing the map back to his father and nodding once. Aiden pocketed the paper and turned for the road.

 

     "We're going to need some sort of way to travel. It will take at least thirty minutes by car, but he traffic will only get worse. I'm going to show you a way witches can travel using magic," Aiden explained. Kody stepped up to his side and turned his gaze on the man.

 

     Aiden held one hand out, palm down to the ground. He held the other out in a fist above it, the back of the hand facing down. Then he muttered something, quickly explaining, "It's a saying to implore the magic within you, asking it for guidance. You will know it without knowing you do. You won't be able to see. Good luck, I'll see you there." Aiden slammed his hands together and lunged forward like he was about to do a front flip. He disappeared in a swirl of bright green, flickering flames, wisps curling around his head and enveloping him. There was a hiss, and the air was silent and clear once again.

 

     Kody swallowed and held his hands like his father had, holding his head high and staring at the trees on the other side of the road. He steeled himself and took a deep breath.

 

    _"O, Magic, running through my veins so bold._

_Curb your power, and seal my thoughts within,_

_Focus inward, and reach out to take hold._

_Help me know the way, flowing under my skin._

_O, Magic, grateful heart and strong desire._

_Have mercy and tell me what to perceive,_

_My eyes cannot see and my blood burns like fire._

_Show me the way of the witch, from the flames I will receive."_

 

     Kody's eyes and skin tingled, and he fought the urge to hold his breath. His muscles burned like fire slid up his arms and engulfed them. By sheer force of willpower, he forced his arms into motion and slammed his hands together as he jumped forward headfirst. Instead of hitting each other, his hands disappeared in a flash of green flames that seemed to come from within his own skin. Fire filled his vision before he hit the ground, and his eyes burned, searing white-hot with green flames. He cried out as he disappeared into the unknown realm of magic.

 

     Kody couldn't see, just like his dad had warned. His eyes still burned, and pain flared down his arms and legs, turning his knees to jelly and stiffening his fingers. He could feel the hot presence of his magic, coursing through him and swirling around him. One band of warmth settled over his eyes, somehow soothing the burning pain. The reassuring pressure over his eyes stayed, but the same warmth spread down his neck and chest to relieve his body of pain, strengthening his knees and loosening his fingers. A voice in his head painted words through the heavy warmth, a fiery streak of bold, raw power.

 

_Destination?_

 

     Kody sucked in a sudden breath when he realized he'd been holding it. The stifling air burned his throat, and the warmth slid over his mouth, filtering the heat out. Kody sighed gratefully and said carefully, "The base of the mountains at the edge of town."

 

     The magic hissed and churned around him, and then he was moving at breakneck speed. He could tell it was fast even through the shelter of his own power and his lack of sight. The fire burned through the warmth and sent flashes of hot pain across his face. Kody yelled and shied away as much as he could while floating in space and time. His gentle magic welcomed him and grew stronger, shielding him from his more fierce, powerful side.

 

     The movement suddenly stopped, and the forces released him. Kody tumbled forward, falling into oblivion, and then he hit the ground headfirst. He groaned and got to his knees, looking up at a hand in front of his face. His father smiled down at him from above, the late afternoon sun making it hard to see. He took the hand and let Aiden help him up, eyes burning and fingers tingling.

 

     Aiden glanced to the right, and Kody followed his gaze to the base of the mountains, a bare dirt path winding up the side. It got harder and changed to stone a quarter way up. Aiden jogged over to the path and started along it, Kody not far behind. They walked for a good two hours before Kody broke the silence.

 

     "Why don't we just use the teleportation magic to get to the cave?"

 

     Aiden looked sideways at him and answered, "It takes more energy the farther you go, and going higher is even harder. You also have to be able to picture the place in your mind, like you did for the mountain base."

 

     Kody nodded and looked around at the few trees and boulders scattered across the sloping mountain face. He kicked a rock and watched it go skidding off the edge of the path, hitting the ground underneath after a few seconds. He turned back to the path and looked for another rock to kick.

 

       _Wait, what? Ground?_

 

     Kody stopped and turned on his heel, peering over the edge. Aiden ran over, already telling him to get back, but Kody just sat on the ridge, turned to face the path, and dropped off the edge.

 

     Aiden yelled and scrambled to look over, but Kody stared back up at him from halfway down the small rock face above a ledge. A gaping dark hole stood out from the slate grey to the left of him, set into the rock. Kody let go and fell to the ground, landing neatly and straightening.

 

     "Well?" he asked, annoyed.

 

     Aiden shook his head and climbed down after his son, reaching the ledge as Kody put a hand on the wall of the cave. He squinted inside, then took two steps forward and disappeared. Aiden swore and ran after him.

 

     He caught up a few feet in and pulled out a small flashlight. He had brought backpacks for them both, filled with harnesses and climbing gear as well as food, light, and water. He handed one to Kody and ventured further inside, sweeping the tiny beam over the huge walls and dark expanse of the tunnel.

 

     Five minutes later, the cave opened up into a large cavern, lit with magical glowing lichen and plastered with green moss and dripping water. More magical plants like neon blue Flare Mushrooms--which made a potion able to be thrown or shot like a flare and create light--and softly glowing Rijoo Moss--which could be concocted into several advanced potions as a base material--lined the floor. A puddle of dark water collected droplets from the uneven ceiling and rippled almost imperceptibly.

 

     Kody stared in awe and reached to touch a Flare Mushroom, but Aiden held his wrist.

 

     "Don't touch. Those are poisonous before brewed and have to be harvested carefully," he warned. Kody swallowed and nodded, drawing back his hand.

 

     Aiden followed a tunnel on the right and stopped when sunlight filtered through. He flicked off the flashlight and walked to the edge of the drop-off tunnel, looking up. 

 

     There, poking out from a rock barely illuminated by the dying rays of the disappearing sun, was a single Yellow Cliff Mushroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, this is short. I'm trying, I promise.

**Author's Note:**

> This may become part of a series, depending on how much support it gets.
> 
> I also realize that this fandom may not be the most popular, especially on AO3. If you want to read the original webcomic, visit webtoon.com and check it out for yourself! Emma Krogell, who writes Lumine, is an amazing artist. She uploads new parts every Sunday. Reading the original would also aid in the understanding of this fanfiction. Other webcomics are just as good, though, so make sure to find a couple other enjoyable ones, as well! Wishing all crystal nights, Star


End file.
